


The Hunter’s Heart

by AeonTheDimensionalGirl



Series: I’ve Got You (You’re Safe Now) [28]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Era, Curse Breaking, Cursed Merlin (Merlin), Deviates From Canon, Episode: s01e11 The Labyrinth of Gedref, Getting Together, Guilty Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Hurt Merlin (Merlin), Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mutual Pining, Post-Magic Reveal, Protective Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Season/Series 01, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:01:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27248458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AeonTheDimensionalGirl/pseuds/AeonTheDimensionalGirl
Summary: A unicorn is shot. Yet Merlin is the one lying in the ground, bleeding with the arrow pierced through his body.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Series: I’ve Got You (You’re Safe Now) [28]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1939345
Comments: 24
Kudos: 531





	The Hunter’s Heart

**Author's Note:**

> **PROMPT No 28. SUCH WOW. MANY NORMAL. VERY OOPS.**  
>  Accidents | **Hunting Season** | Mugged
> 
>  _*Grabs two completely different episodes and smashes them together*_ You can make a fic out of this!

Arthur loves hunting, this is no secret.

But he hates hunting with his father; Uther gets incredibly competitive to a point that he even goes to critique Arthur’s _footwork_ , for fucks sake.

Granted, the Crown Prince would have taken Merlin, but…

Well, he wasn’t in speaking terms with the boy who had lied to him since they met, and even if Arthur _had_ wanted to talk to him, say- the night they returned from Ealdor, the sorcerer had taken to avoiding him.

Quite annoyingly well too. The blond had not seen hair or hide of Merlin ever since they arrived into the citadel and he walked directly into his chambers wondering if everything he knew of the raven had been a lie, all a sennight ago.

A small part of Arthur didn’t blame Merlin from hiding himself from the Crown Prince though. The revelation that the boy had been a sorcerer had ensured in a screaming match between both of them shortly after Will’s funeral, and speaking of the dead man, he’d tried to convince the blond that he’d been the sorcerer, but Arthur quickly called bullshit.

He’d seen Merlin conjure that whirlwind that help them win against Kanen and his men.

And Arthur had said some hurtful words to Merlin too. The blond had regretted his words soon, but what was said was said.

He also remembers the sorcerer’s anger. How Merlin had screamed back at him with fear in his eyes, talking about how pyres and axes and necklaces of rope haunted his dreams; how Arthur’s attitude was nothing but downright hurtful despite everything and-

And how he’d only used his magic for Arthur.

Despite every-

“What are you daydreaming about?”

Arthur jumped when his father approached from behind him, nearly dropping his loaded crossbow in his fright.

“Nothing” he quickly said, “Just- wondering how to get a bigger game than you” he added.

Uther laughed.

“Good luck with that, you’ve gotten nothing!”

The blond decided to bite his tongue instead of pointing out that currently there were four pheasants and a rabbit killed by his hand while the King only had three.

Sighing, Arthur decided to bring his attention back to the tracks he’d spotted just before his thoughts drifted to Merlin; he’d try to look for him when they returned to the citadel.

The prints on the ground were the same of a horse, and the blond wondered if perhaps there was a stray one going around the woods. Perhaps it could be brought to the stables for training.

That being said, Arthur began following the track onto an open clearing which he knew to lead to a small creek, crossbow at the ready just in case he saw some game-

And stopped dead in his feet.

In the clearing, nearly hidden by the branches and the moss, drinking water from the stream was-

A unicorn.

An honest to the gods, horse with a horn, unicorn.

It was all black, it’s mane flecked with something akin to silver dust, making it look like the stars on the night sky; and with a golden horn the same shade as it’s eyes.

A gold that Arthur swears to have seen before on-

He angrily shook his head.

Stop thinking about Merlin, he thought to himself, sorcerer or not, he was not going to compare Merlin to a creature of magic damn it!

… Even if the shade was just as pretty as his-

FUCK!

Gritting his teeth, Arthur took to watching the unicorn for a bit.

He’d thought they were hidden from man, like his favorite nanny used to tell him in conspired whispers as she put him to bed; and he’d also believed that unicorns were supposed to be white. Something about purity-

The Crown Prince was hit by a grim thought.

What if the black unicorn meant a bad omen?

Could Camelot be in danger if he let this creature of magic roam around?

Carefully, Arthur took aim-

And hesitated.

If Merlin were here, he would probably be telling him to not even dare shoot the unicorn, just like he opposes to any other hunting trip and Arthur would just ignore him-

He’s shot animals before, and he’d taken down creatures of magic as well.

So-

Why was this one causing him to feel conflicted?

Is it because he sees some of Merlin in the creature?

Is it because he knows it would upset Merlin?

Is it because, subconsciously, he knows that his father is wrong about magic and the recent reveal of his manservant’s secret is causing him to question everything he ever knew?

Slowly, Arthur began to put his weapon down-

And nearly dropped it again when he felt a firm hand gripping his shoulder.

“Well then?” Uther hissed in his ear, “Shoot it!” 

When the fuck had his father followed him?!

“I-”

Arthur didn’t know what to do.

He turned to look back and forth in slow growing panic at the King and at the unicorn, who had begun to walk into the middle of the clearing, seemingly oblivious to the danger.

“If you won’t do it” his father said with exasperation, loading up a bolt on his crossbow, “Then I will”

And pointed to the unicorn’s flank, finger pressing on the trigger-

“NO!”

Arthur slammed down Uther’s crossbow just as the arrow began to release-

And in his panic, accidently activated the trigger in his own weapon.

Both Pendragons watched how both arrows were released at the same time towards the unicorn, who looked up, clearly startled at the newly revealed men-

The King’s bolt landed on the ground, narrowly avoiding the creature’s hooves.

The Crown Prince’s, on the other hand, landed on its left shoulder.

The unicorn let out a sound of agony, rearing back in fright as a trickle of blood began oozing out of its wound, giving Arthur a look that the blond could swear it was of betrayal before stumbling out of the spot in a difficult trot, clearly trying to run away-

“Well done, Arthur!” Uther exclaimed to his shaken son, who could only stand there feeling dread forming on his stomach, “We should follow it-”

“I’ll do it!” Arthur cut the King off, “You go get the horses, I’ll-” he swallowed, “I’ll get the remains”

His Father nodded.

“Very well” he smiled at him with pride, placing his hand on the blond’s shoulder, “Good job” he said again before turning to where they left his horses.

Once the Crown Prince knew that Uther was out of sight, he threw away his crossbow, feeling disgusted with himself.

Bracing himself and with his heart on his throat, Arthur followed where the unicorn had fled, the feeling of dread just getting stronger as the distant sounds of a crying animal began to reach his ears-

Until he arrived to another, more closed off clearing, nearly hidden by thick bushes, where the prints of the unicorn took a strange smudged figure.

Steeling himself once more, Arthur pushed away the shrubs, ready to face the creature he had hurt-

And staggered back in shock, face paling.

Lying in the middle of the clearing there was no fallen unicorn.

There was a boy.

A pale, naked boy, with a familiar mop of raven black hair-

“Merlin?” Arthur whispered with horror.

The blond immediately ran to his fallen servant, wondering why the hell had the sorcerer being doing in the woods, naked-

And was further terrified to see an arrow on Merlin’s shoulder.

The same arrow he’d shot the unicorn with.

Arthur dropped to his knees in further shock, mind reeling.

He- he was sure he’d hit the unicorn, he _saw it_ -

And if Merlin had the arrow embedded on his shoulder-

“Oh gods” Arthur whispered, feeling what little he had of color in his face leaving him completely as the realization hit him.

_Merlin had been the unicorn._

“No” he mumbled with horror as he gathered Merlin onto his arms, a trembling hand hovering over the bleeding wound he’d inflicted him with, “No, no, no, no- Merlin- I- _NO!_ ”

Arthur hadn’t even noticed he’d begun to cry as he tried to look for the boy’s pulse and found droplets falling onto his pale face.

“Never thought I’d see a hunter regret shooting down an innocent creature”

Arthur shot his head up in alarm at the unknown voice that suddenly resonated in the clearing.

“W-Who’s there?” the Crown Prince called, bringing Merlin closer to him as he looked around for the speaker, “Show yourself!”

“I am here, Arthur Pendragon” the voice said, appearing right in front of the blond, who startled lightly.

It was an elderly man, dressed in ropes of different shades of white and holding a staff, face grim as he looked down at the shaken Crown Prince.

“I am Anhora, keeper and guardian of the unicorns” the man introduced himself, “And you have mortally wounded the most important little one under my protection”

Arthur stilled.

He’d-

“No” he whispered again, franticly shaking his head, “No, please, I- I didn’t mean-!” he sobbed, cupping Merlin’s deathly pale cheek, “I didn’t mean to shoot him! It was an accident- I- I was going to let him go! I swear!”

“Accident or not, you still shot a unicorn, Arthur Pendragon” Anhora gravely said, “And there shall be consequences for it”

“Let me fix this!” Arthur pleaded, desperate as he clutched the dying raven in his arms, “Please! I- I can take him to a physician to treat him!”

He couldn’t lose Merlin.

Not like this-

“’R’th’r?” a voice weakly called from under his arms.

“Merlin!” Arthur exclaimed, watching the boy’s pretty azure eyes open briefly, “Oh thank the gods” he laughed in relief, squeezing him lightly.

He wasn’t dead.

He was _alive_ -

“You’re a resilient one” Anhora said, voice also laced with relief and awe, coming to stroke the raven’s hair.

“You shot me” Merlin told Arthur with hurt in his eyes, who flinched in return.

“I- I know” the blond swallowed, “I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry, Merlin, I- I swear to you I didn’t mean to- I was going to but I decided to let you go but my father saw you and- and he was going to shoot you and it was an accident I swear-” he cried, hanging his head low in shame, “I’m sorry”

Merlin didn’t say anything to him, simply starting at him with unreadable eyes before nodding to himself and turning to Anhora, mumbling something ineligible.

“I’m afraid I did not hear you, little one” the keeper said.

“Foul play” Merlin murmured weakly to the man, “I- I was with the others, when I suddenly lost my way and found myself in the clearing” he whimpered, “I felt magic taking me there”

“I see” Anhora said, voice neutral as he turned to Arthur, “And then the Prince of Camelot appears with hunting gear” he gripped his staff, “Interesting”

He laid a hand over Merlin and Arthur, eyes briefly glowing a dark yellow-

And the blond couldn’t help but gasp when he saw a dark wisp dissipate from both of their bodies.

“Nimueh” the man hissed. In the Crown Prince’s arms, the raven tensed.

He must know the name then.

“I see” the keeper repeated, this time looking pensive, “This changes things” he added as he got up and began to pace.

Meanwhile, Arthur softly lay Merlin on the ground, removing his vest, planning on placing it over the raven’s privates to further protect his privacy-

When a silk silver robe appeared next to the sorcerer.

Shocked, the Crown Prince looked at Anhora, who simply gave him a small nod before resuming his pensive pacing.

Arthur carefully helped Merlin onto the fine piece of clothing before cutting out strips from his own tunic to use as bandages, pursing his lips as he took in the arrow he’d shot the raven with.

He lay his hand on the bolt, nervously looking at the sorcerer, who looked resigned but nodded anyway.

It was not a pretty sound what came out of Merlin’s mouth, but at least the arrow was out of his body. Hurriedly, Arthur began to bandage his shoulder with the makeshift rags to prevent him from bleeding out.

“Merlin… what happened to you?” he asked, trying to distract the raven from the process, who sighed between winces.

“Bit of a long story” he mumbled, “But it begins when we got back from Ealdor”

Arthur listens with complete astonishment to Merlin’s tale.

Afraid for his life and his future in Camelot, the sorcerer had gone to a dragon who lived _under_ the castle and who he’d been talking to ever since his arrival to the citadel, looking for advice on what to do next and hoping to get some consolation-

But the dragon had raged instead.

“He began to scream at me” Merlin said, voice lost, “He said that I ruined the narrative by admitting to having magic”

“What does that even mean?” Arthur asked with bewilderment as he tied up the bandages.

“Anhora believes he had some sort of gran plan. Dragons can see bits of the future, you see, and apparently this one had one from the moment I stepped on Camelot” the raven’s voice was slightly bitter, “Apparently he’s been manipulating me from the start, and you knowing of my magic was a big scorching hole in his plans” he bit his lip, looking away and clutching the robe.

“He- he said that I needed to be punished” Merlin whispered, “For my indiscretion in thwarting destiny. The next thing I know, I’m in my room, with no knowledge of how I got there, moments before the sun was about to break in the horizon”

“And then?” Arthur asked, having an inkling by the way the sorcerer’s eyes teared up.

“I turned into a unicorn when dawn broke” he admitted, “I panicked, I couldn’t communicate- I nearly gave Gaius a heart condition when he found me. He guessed it was me, thank the gods, but he couldn’t find anything to reverse this… curse”

Sighing, the raven turned to look back at the Crown Prince.

“I nearly gave him another nasty surprise when dusk came”

“You turned back into a human” Arthur guessed. Merlin nodded.

“Gaius knew I was in further danger in Camelot in this state, and so he took me into the woods and summoned Anhora. Begged him to take me in” he smiled wryly, “I’ve been living with him for the past sennight”

“That’s why I couldn’t find you!” Arthur exclaimed.

“You were looking for me?” Merlin asked with clear surprise, “Why?” he added, looking wary.

The blond awkwardly rubbed his neck.

“To talk about your magic” he revealed, “I-” he looked away, “I wanted to make you know that you were safe”

Merlin gave an unamused snort, raising an eyebrow as he gestured to his wound.

“I know” Arthur sighed, “I’m sorry”

“It’s strange hearing you apologize” Merlin said with a small smile.

“Really, _Mer_ lin?” the blond asked with exasperation, but there was a smile of his own betraying him.

“You do realize that the last time you apologized to me, you ended up owning me a drink, right?” the raven replied, eyes twinkling despite the pain he was in.

The Crown Prince chuckled, and was about to reply when they hear Anhora approach them, face grim.

“Very well” he finally said, “You shall be put on trial, Arthur Pendragon”

He clicked his fingers.

And everything went black.

* * *

Arthur wakes up on a beach.

To be more specific, he wakes up seated on a chair, a table with two goblets in front of him; Merlin on the other side, looking like he had woken up too.

Anhora stood far apart from them.

“Normally, for killing a unicorn, a malady sets upon the land as punishment” he began to say, “However, this situation is quite different, for the unicorn was born a man, and the man who shot him was trying to stop the murder in the first place”

He nodded to the Crown Prince.

“The trial is simple, Arthur Pendragon” Anhora said, “If you pass it, the malady will not fall upon Camelot, and Merlin’s curse shall be completely broken-”

They both inhaled sharply at this.

“Fail it, Camelot and Merlin suffer the consequences of your actions” he finished saying.

“Wait- why would Merlin suffer too if I fail?” Arthur asked with worry, turning to look at the raven.

Anhora let out a shaky exhale.

“Merlin should have died with the arrow” he revealed, face sorrowful, “Your guilt is keeping him alive for the moment”

Arthur looked at Merlin again, who’d gone pale.

Oh gods-

“Back to the trial” Anhora pressed, “In these cups there is enough water for one single drink. One is harmless, and the other one possesses a deathly poison” he said-

And the bastard disappeared, leaving both men to panic over the situation.

At the end, it’s Merlin who figures it out.

Pour both liquids into one goblet.

Now the problem lay in who would drink it.

“I’m a servant, I’m not important” Merlin was stressing, “I’ll drink it”

“No way” Arthur hissed.

Couldn’t he see that he was important to-

Arthur’s eyes widened.

Oh.

_Oh._

“Arthur?” Merlin asked, “What’s wrong?”

And he looked back.

Quick as lighting, Arthur grabbed Merlin’s cup, pouring the liquid onto his own-

When he finished, the raven was looking at him in horror, eyes wide, seemingly realizing what was about to happen as Arthur shakily rose the cup.

“No-” Merlin weakly whispered, “No, Arthur- don’t drink it, please!”

He hesitated briefly, looking at Merlin’s teary eyes and broken face, and came to a quick decision.

“I love you” Arthur whispered, giving the raven a small smile before drowning the poison.

The last thing he heard was Merlin screaming his name.

* * *

When Arthur woke up, he was greeted by a sobbing Merlin.

“What?” he mumbled in confusion.

He’d drank the poison.

Didn’t he?

But instead of answers, the sorcerer let out a cry and begun to punch at his torso with his good hand, painfully.

“You idiotic, stupid, ass of a prat!” Merlin screamed as he continuingly hit Arthur’s chest, “You don’t say that and then drink something that you think it’s poison!”

Think?

“Congratulations, Arthur Pendragon” Anhora said, smiling, “You’ve passed”

“I don’t understand” the Crown Prince whispered, stopping the attack at his torso by holding Merlin.

“To harm a unicorn, you must be heartless” the keeper explained, “But you showed remorse. The trial consisted if you were pure of heart” his grin grew, “By choosing to sacrifice your life for Merlin’s, you’ve showed you have love in your heart”

Arthur turned to look at Merlin, who still had silent tears falling of his eyes, but his cheeks looked rosy.

He looked timid.

“Are you safe?” the Crown Prince asked, cupping the raven’s cheek to wipe away a tear.

“Yes” Merlin whispered, “I felt the curse lift when you-” he blushed more, “When you told me you loved me”

He bit his lip, smile still shy.

“I love you too, by the way”

Feeling a delighted grin on his face, Arthur kissed him.

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve had this idea in my ‘idea folder’ since last year, and I didn’t have any motivation to write it until I saw the prompt and got all excited.


End file.
